You And I : Part 2

TaBear/ZeePan

"You're early today..." says Ta. He is still in bed when Zee is ready to leave the dorm.

"I need to send the assignment to Mr. Yu."

"This early?"

Zee chuckles. 6 am is considered late for him. Usually, he wakes up at 4 am. But today, he ends up awake at 5 am.

"According to Mr. Yu's watch, it is considered as late," he replies.

"What timezone does he use?" Ta slowly rose from his bed. He cracks his joints, drinks a glass of water, and sits still in a daze, thinking about his future, perhaps.

Instead of replying to him, Zee just flashes a smile.

"Gotta go now. See you at Auditorium 3!"

Ta has no energy left to stop Zee from leaving. He blinks his eyes slowly, with an intention to continue sleeping. However, the sound from his phone wakes him up immediately.

"Morning..."

"Are you still in bed?" the caller asks him, voice full of fury but cute.

"Yes..."

"Ah... I wanna cry now!"

"What's wrong, teerak... Hmm?" Ta's sweet voice serenaded the whole room.

"I thought I could ask for your help," Bear sighs.

"What kinda help do you need, my prince?"

"Prince, my ass!" Ta laughs in tiny. He loves teasing his boyfriend. Bear hates it when Ta calls him the prince. Because that will make him look too young and too high-maintenance.

"But you love my ass, right...?"

"Ter, this is not the time to be horny. I left my worksheet in the council room. I thought you were at the campus by now because you told me you have a morning class. Now, I have to come early, stop by at the council room, and retrieve the worksheet by myself!" there's frustration in Bear's voice.

"The love of my life, don't you worry. I'm here to help you. It happened that my beloved roommate had gone to class already. Let me call him and ask for his help. Okay?" says Ta.

"Ah! Really? Oh, thank God I have a best friend like Zee!" Bear squeaks.

"Hello, you should thanked your boyfriend over here... He's the one who suggested that idea!"

"Always wanna claim everything! If my boyfriend wakes up early like his roommate, I won't have to ask for my friend's help! And.. Hold on! Why is Zee already at the campus, and you're still in your room? I thought you had a morning class?!"

Ta halts a bit. He curses under his breath.

Last night, he lied to Bear so he wouldn't feel guilty when Bear had to chase him out of his dorm last night.

"I got class. On my way... On my way..."

"Ter, please don't lie to me just to please me,"

Now, Ta feels like a bummer.

"I didn't mean to lie but I-"

"I'm sorry for not being able to come out to my family yet," Ta halts when he listens to Bear's serious note. He sits on his bed and pauses a bit. The call is silent all of a sudden.

"We've discussed this, teerak. I told you I'm fine. As long as we love each other, nothing else matters. Coming out or not, it's your choice," Ta tries to calm Bear down.

"I hope, one day I can tell the whole world that I'm yours..."

"I think by now the whole campus can see that I'm yours and you're mine," Ta teases Bear. The man snarkily laughs.

"Don't worry too much about it. As long as you love me, I won't ask for more,"

Ta can feel that Bear is crying, or at least gloomy from the other line. Their love story is simple, but the aftermath is a bit complicated to catch up. It's hard for him, but even harder for Bear.

"I'll see you in the afternoon class... Gotta go now," Bear quickly cuts the call.

Ta flops his body on the bed, gazing at the white ceiling on the top of his head.

"I better text Zee..." he says.

***

Zee ascends the stairs one by one. He wasn't supposed to stop by here, but since Ta asked for his help, he has no choice but to. Since the class starts at 9 am, he has a lot of time to stop by here and there.

Just now, after submitting the assignment, he stopped by for breakfast. Thank God Ta texted him on time. Or else, he has to ask Bear to retrieve the worksheet by himself. It's quite inconvenience for the boy as he lives quite far from the campus.

When he arrives at the council, he stands there in shock.

"What are you doing here?" he asks.

Pan turns around in hasty. She stutters a bit, not sure what to do.

Funny, isn't it? These two dared to speak in such a flirtatious yesterday, but now when there is only them in the same space, both drown in silence.

Pan stands there in the most awkward pose ever. She isn't sure what to do, or how to start the conversation. It's been too long since they faced each other, one-on-one like this. Meanwhile, Zee, who is probably still in shock, stuns like a statue. Gazing at the woman who once had been in his life.

"Morning..." finally, Zee greets Pan modestly.

"I need to talk to you about this Saturday..."

As expected, Zee gushes internally.

"Come in first. I need to grab something inside," says Zee. He opens the door with his keycard and lets Pan walks in.

"Excuse Yara and Han. Let me take the responsibility," Pan straight away asking a favor to Zee.

"Won't do. It's final..."

"I don't think they can handle it. Besides, this is the first time we made a mistake. Can you please spare us, only for this time..."

"I believe you guys should learn the lesson together. Be responsible for what you did. Is that hard?" Zee's inquiry makes Pan halts for a moment. She inhales the air that feels somehow intense. And exhales slowly.

"Let me fill in for them. I can do it,"

"I have a reason why I'm asking the three of you to do it together..."

"I can do it by myself..."

"Could you please stop thinking about others and put yourself first?" asks Zee. His voice peeks up a bit, making Pan flinches.

Her patience is slowly draining.

"You ask me to be selfish, just like what you did throughout these years?"

Zee stares at Pan, his eyes waver a bit. Those words remind him of that day when everything crumbled down. All those promises and futures were gone in a second.

Pan realizes that she made a mishap. She looks down and takes a deep breath. She came here this morning to find a solution. Not to argue and be personal towards Zee.

But looks like words can't be pulled back.

"I'm sorry if I cross the line. I believe there is nothing we can do, so we'll work hard on this Saturday," Pan gives in. She was about to leave the room. But her burning heart is eager to burst out.

"Talking about responsibility... I believe, you should see yourself in the mirror, Senior Zee.."

These are the final words that Pan throws at Zee before she leaves him alone in the room.

Zee closes his eyes and tries to calm himself.